Kids House helps families victimized by abuse

"April" is an army veteran who has been helped by… (George Skene, Orlando Sentinel )

December 6, 2013|By Jim Stratton, Orlando Sentinel

The disclosure, when it finally came, left April almost incapable of rational thought.

A laid-off divorced mother of four, she was on her own and trying to make it in Central Florida. Now her 17-year-old daughter was disclosing that for several years, a relative had molestedher while April, an Army veteran, was serving in Afghanistan and Iraq.

In that moment, it all seemed impossible, and yet horribly true.

"You know she didn't just make up something like that," said April, whose name has been changed here to protect her daughter's identity. "But part of me just didn't want to believe it."

No parent does. It's the fear parents lock in the attic, the thought they crowd out of their mind.

It's one of the reasons Lourdes Davis does what she does.

Davis is a child's advocate at Kids House of Seminole, a nonprofit that helps children and families dealing with abuse. The agency is one of many supported by the Orlando Sentinel Family Fund.

Davis met April three months ago, after she was referred to Kids House by law enforcement. The agency has since helped her find counseling for her now 18-year-old daughter, is making sure the family has food for the holidays and is serving as a trail guide through the legal process. Charges in the case are pending.

But set aside those specifics, and listen to what April says Kids House has done for her daughter.

"Everybody here came around her like a cloak, like a cloak of protection, and wrapped her in it," she said.

April was always the protector. A soldier for 12 years, she said she rarely let the girls out of her sight — except when she was deployed. When she went overseas, her four girls would stay with the extended family.

Almost two years ago, April moved with the girls to Florida. She was now out of the Army — on a medical discharge — and had a job lined up.

But her oldest daughter was acting out. There were dark, sudden mood swings. She was drinking and couldn't relate to boys her age. April figured it was fallout from the separation, but a family friend suspected something more.

He told the girl, "You need to tell someone what happened."

Eventually, April's daughter did.

The sexual contact, she told authorities, began when she was 12 and the male relative was in his late 20s. April said he bought her gifts — an iPod, stuffed animals, a cellphone — and asked her not to tell anyone. Much of the abuse occurred, April said, while she was serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The allegations have fractured the family. Some members believe April's daughter is making the story up. A few have thanked her for coming forward. April is grateful for the support, but it's almost irrelevant.

"Whatever anyone else says doesn't make a difference," she said. "What makes a difference is what I can do for my children."

Kids House helped April sort all that out, providing a road map to available resources. It helps families with everything from emergency food assistance, to finding a safe place to stay, to applying for crime-victims compensation. The agency also is helping April, who was laid off last year, look for work.

The goal is to provide comprehensive services so that families don't find themselves shuffling from agency to agency.

"If a family needs something, our program really has a hard time saying no," said Jennifer Napier, director of the agency's child-advocate program.

To a family reeling from charges of sexual abuse, that sort of partner is invaluable. Sometimes, it's the only thing that helps them get from one day to the next.

"I realized I'm not alone at all with this," April said. "Everybody here, everybody cares."